Amaterasu Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 Moves, Combos, Strategy Guide

Amaterasu is one of the most unique characters in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Equipped with three weapons (and different special moves for each) she has a complex but powerful offense and defense against the rest of the cast. She fits in any position on a team since her assists are strong as well.

Amaterasu has very low health though. It's not unusual for her to get killed in a single combo, so her defense has to be on point. The fact that you have to switch weapons back and forth quickly also means you need high execution to bring out Amaterasu's full damage.

• Strengths •
+ Can attack from anywhere on screen.
+ Great throw game.
+ Airdash covers tremendous space in multiple directions.
+ A counter that can be held indefinitely.
+ Good projectiles and a projectile reflector.
+ Has a running ground dash.
+ Very low profile that allows her to duck under fireballs and beams.

Amaterasu's best attack to advance on the opponent. Good range and safe on block.

or
or
Standing, Crouching, or Jumping Hard Attack [All Stances]

Amaterasu's Hard Attack changes depending on which stance she is in.

In Reflector Mode, standing and crouching Hard Attack have standard range, but the crouching version can be jump-canceled to add more hits to a combo. Jumping Hard Attack can cross up into a full combo, which is very important. Jumping Hard Attack in Reflector Mode can also be chained into itself, one of the very few that can.

In Glaive Mode, standing and crouching Hard Attack have way more range. Jumping Hard Attack can cross up but it's harder to land a full combo. You can hold the Hard Attack button down in the air to charge the sword, and if you land a full charge you get a free ground bounce.

In Rosary Mode, standing and crouching Hard Attack have a lot of range, but slow startup and recovery. The attacks aren't necessarily bad, but they're not that great either. Jumping Hard Attack is great at stopping approaches from players, but it doesn't have many active frames along with slow startup.

(Hold Right)
Reflector, Glaive or Rosary Chain

In all three stances, Amaterasu can chain together her Forward + Hard Attack move. Some of the chains are better than others though.

The Reflector Chain is the best one by far. It's very difficult to punish on block (since most people pushblock on reaction, it's even harder than before) and it chains into Amaterasu's launcher. This is a great move for confirms and for tacking on damage, and is absolutely vital to Amaterasu's offense.

The Glaive Chain is largely avoided because Amaterasu has better damage options from her Sweep -> Light Thunder Edge options. It also pushes the opponent out of range, making it hard to combo from.

The Rosary Chain does decent damage and is a great long-range punish, but that's about all that it's good for.

(Hold)
Glaive Stab

Properties

A very important combo-move for Amaterasu. Hits off the ground and allows a rejuggle as a combo-ender.

Special Moves

Head Charge

Damage

Light
70,000

Medium
70,000

Hard
70,000

Properties

The Head Charges have several uses. The first is to use the Light or Medium Head Charge to stall for time in the air to avoid chip from Supers or an X-Factored character. Since these versions of the Charges don't do much hitstun, you can use them for throw resets in the middle of combos.

The second use is to apply the Hard version in combos to do a ground bounce. While this works in all three Weapon modes it's much easier to do in Reflector mode combos so stick with it in that situation.

Power Slash

Damage

Light
80,000

Medium
80,000

Hard
80,000

One of Ammy's best defensive options. Many players throw this out against incoming characters after a KO to force them to block.

Even just using this move in blockstrings is a smart idea, as it's safe on block. You can also cover airdash angles and other approaches easily. A really good move.

Most Amaterasu players stick with the first two weapons and fight with those, since they offer the most freedom and utility in attacking and movement.

It's generally agreed that it's good to stick with Reflector by default and only switch to Glaive if you're having trouble getting in.

When Amaterasu has a certain weapon equipped, she can access one of the specific special moves below. It's important to memorize this so you don't accidentally try to perform a special move with the wrong weapon.

Solar Flare [Reflector]

Damage

Light
150,000

Medium
150,000

Doing this motion has Amaterasu summon a shield in front of her. The Light version will perform a counter against high and mid physical attacks, and the Medium will counter low attacks.

If you find that people are mashing recklessly or jumping on you with a lot of attacks, then the Light Solar Flare is a great counter choice.

Once the counter lands and the cinematic is complete, you can perform a followup with Okami Shuffle (while they are spinning) or go for a very difficult OTG followup after a weapon switch for more damage.

The Hard Solar Flare is actually an extremely effective projectile reflecting attack. You can use this to turn projectile wars in Amaterasu's favor. It will also absorb beams.

You can hold the button down on Solar Flare to keep the counter active for as long as you'd like. This means you don't have to time the counter, which is great.

Thunder Edge [Glaive]

Damage

—
150,000

This move can be charged up by holding down the attack button. Unless you're doing complicated Vale of Mist combos, you'll want to rely on the Light Thunder Edge only.

The longer you charge the move, the higher the blockstun inflicted on the opponent. Also, the Light Thunder Edge is always safe on block, making it a key offensive maneuver.

Glaive Chop [Glaive]

Damage

—
88,600

Properties

Since this move is terribly unsafe on block, it's only useful for following up after a Glaive Stab ground bounce to ensure that you have time to land a Super.

Cold Star [Rosary]

Damage

Light
20,000 per hit

Medium
20,000 per hit

Hard
20,000 per hit

Properties

You can rapid fire this attack by mashing the attack button used to initiate Cold Star. This move has a higher than average amount of durability, making it great in projectile wars. The ice shards also travel extremely quickly after the startup is over.

If you find that opponents are trying to zone you out with beams and projectiles, duck under them with Ammy's short crouching profile and respond with the Cold Star.

Be wary of Cold Star's long startup, as it leaves you vulnerable to jumping attacks at mid range or teleports.

Hyper (Super) Moves

Okami Shuffle

Damage

Hyper
228,300 - 272,300

Properties
(Ice)

A very strong Hyper Combo and Amaterasu's signature attack. This Hyper consists of three stages, and it's important to know how they function.

The Fire portion of the move hits only in the visible screen area, even if Amaterasu is not in it. If the opponent is not visible on screen, they won't be hit.

The Ice portion of the move hits OTG, but this tends to only apply in DHC combos. This part hits everywhere in front of Amaterasu.

The Lightning also hits everywhere in front of Amaterasu, and the final Lightning strike will auto-track the opponent as long as they are still in front of her. The bolt will also perform a hard knockdown.

Due to the fast startup, block safety and wide coverage of this move, it's great to use against aggressive assist calls, as a combo ender or for chip damage against opponents.

Vale of Mist

Properties

This is a slowdown mode that affects all of the opponent's characters. Due to the slowing of everything from attacks to hitstun, certain combos that Amaterasu couldn't do before are now possible.

This Hyper is great for forcing opponents to stay still and stop running away. It's also great to use against X-Factored opponents to negate some of their speed boost and give you time to flee.

Divine Instruments

Damage

Hyper
400,000

Properties

A Level 3 with almost no horizontal range but a decent amount of vertical range. Make sure you're pretty close to the opponent before you try this.

It has a nice amount of invincibility making it good for a close-range counter.

Assists

Type

Move

Class

Angle

A

Solar Flare

Extra

Instant

B

Cold Star

Shot

Y

Bloom

Extra

Instant

Assist Alpha: Ammy's reflector is not good as an assist. It comes out too far behind and doesn't stay active for long.

Assist Beta: Amaterasu's best assist. Good for lockdown and she hops off the ground to attack, making it more difficult to hit her. Has slow startup so it should be used preemptively in rushdown.

Assist Gamma: One of the very rare meter building assists in the game that builds roughly 30% Hyper meter. However, the startup is really slow and vulnerable, meaning that it takes a long time between assist calls to build meter.